Steve Hofmeyr is back in the headlines, stirring controversy with a racially charged message on social media.
The Afrikaans singer and outspoken activist once again ignited debate, calling on fellow Afrikaners to “take back” what he claims belongs to them.
A Call to Action on X
This week, Hofmeyr posted on his X account a message that many found deeply polarizing. He wrote:
“Slowly but surely, we are taking back that which never belonged to you.
That which you f***ed in your orgy of entitlement.
Our flags were never yours. Our songs, streets, and city names were never yours, our monuments were never yours.”
He added:
“You despised our culture, heritage, education, services, low unemployment, murder- and rape rates.
You sold to the world your substandard as norm, with weaklings and criminals as leaders, but the rot has surfaced for all to see.”
The tweet quickly drew mixed reactions, with some agreeing with Hofmeyr’s outspoken stance, while others accused him of promoting racial division.
Revisiting the K-Word Controversy
This isn’t the first time Hofmeyr has courted backlash.
In May, he defended a viral video in which he expressed a desire to use the racial slur, the K-word.
The video surfaced months earlier after AfriForum lost a Constitutional Court appeal to declare the struggle song Kill The Boer as hate speech—a song still sung by EFF leader Julius Malema despite public debate.
Hofmeyr said at the time:
“I want blackface back. The right to paint my face any colour I want.
I want the K-word back, as well as every word that I had to remove from my vocabulary.
I want cultural appropriation back….I want insults back… I want songs and flags back.
Is there such a place for us in the future? I hope so.”
Defending Free Speech
After the recent backlash to his tweet, Hofmeyr doubled down, defending his right to express himself as an artist. He wrote:
“Yes. I’m an artist. I need my words back, as well as my songs, flags, history, monuments, and taboo expressions.”
He continued:
“I’m a free speech absolutist (save for incitement to violence). Poets need to live where others don’t care to look, said Ben Okri.
I can’t do that on prescribed notions.”
